ManavSewa Ashram provides domestic and institutional care and services to people across Nepal who have been deprived of social inclusion, facing mental health conditions and societal challenges, whether in rural or urban contexts, isolated by their families for mental health conditions, victims of social crime, or simply in need of help and care. This is all made possible through the collective efforts of volunteers, people with good faith, community and government support, and a group of dedicated officials of the Ashram. Simply put, it is a place to call home for all those in need. Amist the farmland surrounding the industrial city of Birgunj, the site lies in the great plains of terai region. The facility is planned to accommodate 100 residents with a male-female ratio of 50-50, along with Humanity Learning center, a residencial training center for 50 people.
Rammed earth technology has been used, inspired by vernacular aesthetics and material usage, creating an environment that promotes sustainable practices and a healthy lifestyle within the establishment. Locally sourced building materials and resources have been utilized from the initiation to the operation of the facility for better sustainability in the energy and resource management. Multiple interactions with local communities have taken place since the initiation of the project, focusing on the subject of vernacular ideas and ways of living in such settlements of terai, to better understand the human values, connection with the natural surroundings, and identity of the place. Among those interactions were also those with stakeholders and officials under the supervision and collaboration of experts in related fields of natural building practices and engineering to introduce better building solutions while promoting new ways of designing and using locally available building materials and resources.
The facilities are planned in such a way that the two can exist seperately or in coherence as per requirement. Sharing the common areas like parking, hall and entry pavilions, both the facilities are designed to be administered by the Ashram team. Considering the hot and humid climate, the traditional courtyard planning has been opted with buffer corridors that further protect the indoors from the harsh summer sun.
Amidst the slowly degrading trend of architecture and practice in the terai region of Nepal, this design sets an example in modern-day architectural practice to follow in the coming future in the Birgunj region. Ultimately, it will contribute to the larger community. The design aims to create opportunities and share skilled resources with the surrounding communities to promote the concept of natural building practices and healthier habitable spaces in the present-day context of the terai landscape of Nepal.
